magical week

Last week we spent the week in a very magical place...Disney World! It was a week of memories that I hope I never forget! The girls were the perfect age too!! Everything was still so magical to them, but they didn't have to come home during the day and take a nap. Claire and Ava went all day and night and woke up ready to go again. Most nights they stayed awake until after 10pm!!! I have many favorite memories...too many to share on the blog, but of course I have to share some of them, so here it goes......We pulled out of our driveway Monday morning at 5:30 and got to Fort Wilderness exactly 11 hours later! That included 4 stops along the way, one of which was an hour at Cracker Barrel baby! Once we got there and checked in we hit the Magic Kingdom. We stayed there until 10:30 that night. It was a whirlwind of a day for sure!!! One of the funniest memories happened while we were there. Without really thinking Jay, the girls, my mom and I decided to ride Big Thunder Railroad....well that was a mistake. When it stopped at the end my mom was so pale and sick to her stomach and the girls were screaming & crying...oops. I had forgotten how fast and jerky it was and it was in the dark because it was so late at night. There were people standing in line waiting to get on when we were getting off with two screaming children and a pale mom....I was so embarrassed!!! That night we got to watch the fireworks and the Spectromagic light parade. One of the most beautiful things was seeing Cinderella's castle all lit up at night! We spent the next day at the Magic Kingdom again. The girls got their pink Minnie Mouse ears and their very own autograph books. Seeing the girls pose with the characters and get their autographs was one of my favorite things of the week. They of course thought they were the real characters and real princesses....just like I did as a child. I clearly remember getting autographs with my brother when we were kids! Day three we spent at Epcot. There was a lot more to do there than we thought! They have a whole exhibit about Nemo that includes a fun ride and a giant aquarium. The girls favorite thing there was a huge tank with two manatee in it. They were whole heads of lettuce while we watched them! On day four we started the day off with our first character breakfast....Chef Mickey. It was awesome! They food was so good and all of the characters came to our table and talked and goofed off with us for a few minutes. I loved seeing them so excited to see who would come to our table next! We then headed to Animal Kingdom. This was our favorite park as a family. There was so much to do together. We went on the safari and saw lots of animals including hippos, elephants, giraffe, and an ostrich! My dad and I also rode Expedition Everest. We had been planning to ride it for months and it did not disappoint. It was a very high and fast roller coaster that even went backwards in parts. I even talked Jay into going with me the second time. He does not like heights at all, but actually loved the ride after he closed his eyes in the beginning! Our favorite thing there was watching the show about the Lion King. Jay and I had seen it before when we went to Disney a few years ago and we knew the girls would love it! Jay even got called up front to make an elephant sound! It was so funny!!!! The fifth and final day we were there it was rainy and cold, but thank goodness mom had bought us all waterproof jackets before we left....thanks so much mom! Jay and the girls and I started the day off with our princess breakfast. It was such a special time to see the girls meet and talk with Snow White, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Belle and Ariel. Of course they dressed up like princesses too. This was also the day Ava got to meet her beloved Mulan!!! We then all met up at Hollywood Studios for a little while, but were so cold and wet we went back to our cabin. We left Saturday and made it back to Raleigh in one piece. I am already counting the days until we go back again....it will be many, many I am sure! I just loved seeing the girls faces and being with them when they experienced Disney for the first time...it was wonderful!! As they say in Disney all my dreams came true!!!